2004 NASCAR New Rules and Comments - The Chase

Click Here for Top Scoring Driver Data

"I'm not looking forward to it," says Chad Knaus, Johnson's crewchief. "I don't like the new system. It changes everything. Suddenly we'll be racing nine other drivers, but we still have to race against the entire field to do it."

Knaus is among the critics in the NASCAR garage who think the champion should simply be the driver leading the points at the end of all the races.

And no matter who wins the first Nextel Cup championship, every fan who can balance a checkbook will be grabbing their pocket calculators or firing up their computer spreadsheets to compare this year's results to how their favorite driver would have finished in 2003.

And woe unto NASCAR if the winner under the old system would have been Dale Jr.

"Gentlemen, start your grumbling!" Gordon was among those who complained about the new points system when it was first announced. "I know that NASCAR is looking for a series that will be entertaining," Gordon says, "but this sport was founded on racing wheel to wheel, and sometimes I think we go too far."

He is among the critics who say the new system is unfair to drivers. Gordon is concerned that he or Johnson could end up with a huge lead at the end of the 26th race, only to see it go away.

"Suddenly your huge lead ends up being 5 points," Gordon says. "I don't like the idea that someone who scores the most points may not win the championship. It doesn't seem right."

All it does is take points away from the leader," says Ryan Newman, driver of the Alltel Dodge for Penske South. But-like Gordon-when his Alltel Dodge team struggled in early races, being able to battle his way into racing's version of the Final Four didn't seem like such a bad idea.

Gordon also had a bad stretch near the middle of the season, with blown tires and a blown engine. But he was comforted by the fact that even though a few bad races hurt his points total, they probably would not keep him out of the Top 10. His perspective changed somewhat in light of that experience.

"Maybe it's not so bad after all," he says. "Actually, I still don't like it a lot, but if I win the championship because of it, well, I'm not going to complain."

Knaus is even more vocal. "They are trying to make this sport into something it isn't," he says. "It's still racing."

"I'm not real crazy about the change," adds Ken Schrader, driver of the No. 49 Schwan's Dodge. "I kind of like the old system better. But this is what we've got to work with, and I don't think it will change a lot of how we race."

"I think you could have a guy sitting just outside the points and not make the cutoff," he says. "And I suppose it is possible that he could end up scoring more points than the guy who wins the series. But the fact remains, he didn't have enough points when he really needed them."

And there's the rub. For the first time in NASCAR history, drivers must "qualify" to run for the Nextel Cup title. That means the races through race 26 are expected to be an intense scramble for position as drivers try to leave Richmond inside the Top 10.

"It's going to be a little crazy out there," says Newman. "A lot of guys will be trying to get into that Top 10. I think racing's going to be pretty intense among those who have a chance to get there."

"The guys who are in 12th or 13th are going to be really aggressive," adds Gordon. "I think those last few races through Richmond are going to be physical. And those guys who are in Seventh or Eighth are going to be in a position where they have to drive to preserve their ranking. But they can't be too conservative, because if they are, they could be overtaken."

"It's going to be nerve-wracking," predicts Knaus. "It's petrifying. You got to go out there and try to keep your nose clean and try to stay out of trouble as much as possible on the race car side . . . it's scary but it's part of the system. The best thing we can do on our side is try to avoid being in that type of situation."